4 APRIL 2011

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Article from BTNews 4 APRIL 2011

BAA to sell two airports

Britain’s Competition Commission has confirmed an earlier ruling that BAA Ltd is required to sell Stansted and either Edinburgh or Glasgow airports within the next two years.  The Commission has invited responses before publishing its final verdict in May/June.  Interestingly it says that Stansted should be sold first, with a “small overlap’’ between that sale and the disposal of one of the Scottish airports.  Several parties are said to be lined up with bids for one or both of the properties.

With Stansted considerable terminal investment has already been undertaken and a 50% rise in passenger traffic can be achieved without any major work required.  The airport’s biggest problem is its dependence on Ryanair as the dominant carrier, but as easyJet has shone at Gatwick in the longer term this can change.  The budget carrier now serves more destinations than British Airways from the airport.  With Stansted the lack of a dedicated express rail link to London seems to have had the effect of stopping any expansion of long haul international routes.

In Scotland Edinburgh is favourite to be sold, but BAA may decide to price Glasgow in such a way to make its sale more beneficial. www.baa.com

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